Clinton still can’t shake the spectre of Sanders

It is not only American politics which has suddenly been galvanized by anti-establishment candidates. Here in the United Kingdom, every script the political establishment has tried to force down our throats has been flipped this summer, which leads me to speculate that the neoliberal consensus forced through by Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher decades ago is slowly coming to an end.

In the United Kingdom last year, Jeremy Corbyn became leader of the Labour Party with a staggering 59.5 percent of the vote after entering the race as a rank outsider. A self-proclaimed socialist and veteran in his chamber, he has been heaped with praise for the consistency of his beliefs which include but are not limited to opposition to the Iraq War, addressing out of control wealth inequality, expanding the social security net and advocating tuition free education. As he became more and more popular during the leadership election, a ‘systematic’ media onslaught followed but did not stop Corbyn taking over the political conversation across the country and inspiring grassroots support on an unprecedented scale. Sound familiar, team Sanders?

With this stunning level of support from not only Democrats but Republicans and Independents as well, it is no surprise that Clinton’s corporate war chest of donations has struggled to halt the progressive surge thus far, and as Sanders gears up to release a full tax plan ahead of the Iowa vote, it is only going to get harder for Clinton in the coming weeks.